Mullards

[JeffB]

Got em...a pair of matched el84s, and a 12ax7 for V1.

I first just pulled the JJ84s and installed mullards to check for differences.

The Mullard 84s made a big difference. Much smoother/creamier without being compressed or sounding less aggressive. The JJs have a much punchier midrange, but it is hazy and muddy comparitively. Smokey? The Mullards sound more vintage, and like bigger bottles. JJs brittle especially when pushed hard. On my amp, if I push the power section too hard, it gets very brittle and strident, and I have to balance pre and power distortion carefully. The Mullards sound smoother and more musical pushed all the way.

Then I tried the mullard 12ax7 and Svetlana over the course of a few hours. The Mullard x7 is gainier, more midrangey, punchier. It actually made the amp sound closer to how it sounds with JJel84s and Svetlana in V..it brought back some mids the mullard 84s reduced. There is something about the m12ax7 I do not like though...its higher gain than the Svetlana, the highs1 are not as sweet, and seems to have a stronger fundamental tone without the harmonic complexity of the Svetlana.

So far super digging the Mullard 84s, tonally a much nicer tube than the JJs if you are pushing them....more rich, complex and sweet. They make the lead boost on my amp much more usable,.as well as the clean channel.

Not sure about the mullard 12ax7. Still experimenting. Might try it in V2 and see what happens.

I do not think I have owned an amp before that is so sensitive to tube changes.

[JeffB]

Re: Mullards

Mullard in V2, Svetlana in V1, very big, tight, modern, punchy fat preampy distortion. Made the amp sound more like its larger HK siblings.

Not my thing, but an excellent sound.


Mullard in V1, and Svet in V2, MUCH more my style. Still fat, but lower gain, crunchier and sweeter. Sounds like a modded mini hiwatt. Will have to keep it in this order for a few more days and see what happens.

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Mullards

By Mullard, do you mean new Mullards, or old 'uns?

[JeffB]

Re: Mullards

New stuff Ben. Sorry if I was not clear.

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Mullards

No worries; I wonder what the amp is you are using, as that's not mentioned. Have you tried the JJ 803S in the V1 slot yet?

[JeffB]

Re: Mullards

Its my pic over

<--------------------------<<<<<<<<

there or do you not see avatars?

HK TM18.

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Mullards

Ja; I have avatars and signatures disabled.

[Gone_Shootin]

Re: Mullards

Interesting. I recently replaced the Groove Tubes/Sovtek EL-84s in my Blues Jr with JJ EL-844s. I honestly couldn't tell any difference, other than the expected volume drop. Which was a bit of a disappointment. So the Mullard RI EL-84s are next on my of '84s to try in my BJr. Thanks for the info.

And about the Mullard RI 12AX7s. I also noticed that they dull the highs a bit. It was bad enough in my Mesa that I didn't keep them in there, and they just made my already dark Blues Jr more dark. But on the flipside of that coin, I decided to throw one of them into my Radial Plexitube pedal, and it was what that thing needed, since that pedal can get really fizzy really easy. I would like to try some of the new Mullards in my JVM, but I just haven't had the time to finish the mods and get the thing back together. I have a feeling that they would sound good in there.

[misterwhizzy]

Re: Mullards

Is the H&K cathode-biased? I wonder if that has anything to do with it. I slightly preferred Mullards over JJs, but I didn't notice a gigantic difference. It was mainly in the highs, much smoother, without the harsh, punchy, glassiness of the JJs. I did also bias the Mullards slightly on the cooler side.

[hermetico]

Re: Mullards

Usually, tube information without being related to an specific amp and tube positons is worthless.

BUT, yes, Mullard 12AX7 and EL84 reissues are top-notch and work in practically every amp I've tried (except for Marshall, that wants JJ ECC83s stuff).
BUT, those tubes can sound sterile, liveless (excesivelly defined and clear) if you cannot krank your amp.
If you can krank your amp, those are definitively the way to go. They go better the harder they are being pushed and, nothing else (of modern production tubes) compares to the detail, harmonical content and 3D sensation that those tubes can deliver.
For PI positions, I prefer Sovtek 12AX7-LPS, JJ ECC803S or (best) JAN/PHILIPS 5751 but, even a cheap high transconductance chinese tube can do the trick there (12AX7A-C).

[JeffB]

Re: Mullards

I do not know if it is cathode biase dor not. That there be too technicalityish fer me I just roll the tubes.

BEN- I almost got the jj803s, but only had enough funds for one 12ax7, mullard got the pick

I spent several more hours fiddling and tried some more combinations...

Keep in mind, many combinations sound good, but just not to my tastes....

The only way I liked the Mullard in V1 so far..for a more vintagey flavor...is with the ShugangB in V2....which seems to help add some clarity and detail, albeit at the expense of some punch, and low end.

A really nice combination which surprised me, is the Svetlana in V1, and a JJ83s in V2. I am not a fan of that 83s in V1 at all but so far this has been the best combo of 12ax7s, with Mullard 84s.

Svet in v1 with shugangb in v2 was way too thin trebley and weak.

Bottom line, for this amp, the Svet has great complexity and sweet top end, but can be thin, and wimpy unless it is backed up with a thicker,darker tube in V2. The Mullard 12ax7 is beefier, punchier, and has less character. If you are going with lots of preamp gain and a more modern flavored distortion and want to keep things tight, then it works awesome in V1.

Next up I am going to try a ShugangB in V1,.and mullard in V2 and see what happens.

[JeffB]

Re: Mullards

Did a little google...yeah Cathode biased.

I really dig the Mullard breakup more than the JJ EL84s, but there is some fundamental frequency missing with the Mullards 84s that is driving me batty......some kind of midrange difference...lacks.punch. I was super happy with the tone previous, just wanted to experiment, so I may just go back to the JJs and svetlana V1, marshall thingy in V2.

Will give my ears a rest for another day.

[Gone_Shootin]

Re: Mullards

Jeff, I don't know if you've seen it or not, but here's a page with a bunch of Marshall's tube codes.

http://marshallroadhouse.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=11490

[JeffB]

Re: Mullards

Jeff, I don't know if you've seen it or not, but here's a page with a bunch of Marshall's tube codes.

http://marshallroadhouse.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=11490

I have not! Thanks! Looks like my Marshall 12ax7 is also a shugang b...no selection. Does not look the same as the B's that originally came with the amp, it is slightly undersized, but the plates/guts look the exact same. Good to know.

Weird thing though is that the Marshall shugangB is that it sounds nice in V2, but the stock shugangB I tried sounded much thinner, different gain I guess.

For sure this is a very sensitive amp to tube changes. Its fun trying new tubes, to a point anyway.

[JeffB]

Re: Mullards

I know nobody cares, as this whole exercise is for a specific amp, my ears, and gearrs, lol...


BUT...

JJ84ss are definitely out...put them back in, let em warm up for 30min and wow...harsh...the Mullards really smooth the midrange. I put the Mullard 84s back in, the Mullard 12ax7 in V1, JJecc83s in V2, set everything to 0, and re-dialed in my crunch channel, and now it sounds brilliant. Biggest difference is with Mullards is to back off the preamp more than I would with the original tube complement, and jack the master...now the midrange is right, it is a much smoother breakup, has that blitzed power amp crunchiness, and is bigger, open and complex. With the jjs and svet/shugang, or tye stock tubes, I had to pull the power amp back and raise the preamp to keep things from getting strident.

Sounds absolutely fantastic now. All 3 "channels". Before, no matter what tubes I tried, the clean and lead channels were too thin and trebley with the EQ optimized for the crunch channel. Now I can actually get some use out of them as is, if I want.